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tate air navigation service operator AirNav Indonesia has been finalizing preparations to take over the control of airspace above Natuna Islands, Karimun and Tanjung Pinang in Riau Islands province from the Singapore flight information region (FIR). The transfer is scheduled to occur in January 2018.

The airspace, spanning two sectors referred to as sectors B and C, is to be controlled by Tanjung Pinang Control at Ali Haji Fisabilillah Airport in Tanjung Pinang.

Sector A, which covers an airspace area of up to 8 kilometers in radius over Batam and Singapore, will remain under the control of Singapore. The sector is the busiest as the heavy traffic to and from Singapore’s Changi, one of the world’s busiest airports, flies through the airspace.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo instructed his ministers in 2015 to prepare the required human resources and technology to take over control of the three sectors of airspace by 2019.

“The President’s instruction is also in line with the 2009 Aviation Law. In January, next year, the control units [in Tanjung Pinang] will have already been established and in operation,” AirNav Batam’s junior safety manager Oni Yulian Krismawanto told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

He added that over 50 experts, as well as the equipment needed for the operation, had been prepared.

He said the diplomatic dimensions of the matter were handled by the Transportation Ministry and Foreign Affairs Ministry, particularly given the territorial tensions in the South China Sea.

“To us, [diplomacy] is an external issue. AirNav will focus on our role,” Oni said.

He said Indonesia had encountered problems in taking over the FIR from Singapore because it failed to secure enough support to become a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) council for the 2016-2019 terms. It was believed that major aviation accidents in the country had prevented ICAO members from supporting Indonesia’s bid.

Singapore has controlled air traffic in the area since Indonesia’s independence in 1945. In 1993, Jakarta failed to convince the ICAO to transfer control, because of Indonesia’s outdated navigational equipment and a lack of supporting infrastructure. The government boosted the efforts after Jokowi took office in 2014.

Local political observer Zamzami A Karim of the School of Social and Political Science Tanjung Pinang welcomed the takeover, saying that it confirmed Indonesia’s sovereignty over the region.

“If Indonesia is ready with all the required technology, I think the ICAO has to respect our sovereignty,” Zamzami said.

Contacted separately via text messages, Indonesian Ambassador to Singapore I Gede Ngurah Swajaya, when asked about the plan, only said, “I have to check it first.”

Last month, ICAO regional officer for air traffic management Len Wicks said the takeover would not be simple, especially given the major traffic flows involving a significant number of international flights. Len also emphasized that Indonesia would need “major investment” to upgrade its navigation equipment and level of service.

The Transportation Ministry has previously said it installed a Doppler Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Radio Range and Distance Measuring Equipment (DVOR/DME) system at Ranai Airport in Natuna, as well as surveillance systems in Natuna, Tanjung Pinang, Pontianak (West Kalimantan) and Pekanbaru (Riau).